Breaking News, Business, Financial and Economic News, World News from EconoTimes

Become a contributor

Bookmark Econotimes

Thu, Mar 26, 2026 04:36 AM All times are UTC

Follow Series

©Econometrics LLC . All Rights Reserved.

David Holmes

Senior Lecturer, Communications and Media Studies, Monash University

David is a political analyst, social theorist and media scholar. He completed a major in Media Studies at Swinburne University, a BA (Hons) in Politics and Social Theory and a PhD in Social Theory (Department of the History and Philosophy of Science) from the University of Melbourne, where he was awarded the Dwight prize for political science.

He is author or editor of four books in the sociology of communications including: Virtual Politics: Identity and Community in Cyberspace (Sage 1997) and Virtual Globalisation: Virtual Spaces, Tourist Spaces (Routledge 2001), Communication Theory: Media, Technology and Society (Sage 2005) and a Key Concepts in Media and Communications (Sage 2011) co-authored with Paul Jones (UNSW) Over eleven years, he has also co-authored four editions of an analysis of Australian society: Australian sociology (2003, 2007 and 2011, 2014) with Roberta Julian and Katie Hughes. For the last two editions he has written a new chapter on the sociology of climate change.

Fake news and god's wrath: extreme hurricane politics in the US

Sep 11, 2017 08:16 am UTC| Insights & Views Politics Nature

The devastating scenes of destruction and flooding in the Bahamas and the southern states of the US have captivated the world for many weeks now. Hurricanes Harvey and Irma, and Hurricane Jose soon to follow, have stolen...

With battery storage to the rescue, the Kodak moment for renewables has finally arrived

Mar 20, 2017 02:12 am UTC| Technology

Who would have thought that, scarcely five weeks after Treasurer Scott Morrison, paraded a chunk of coal in parliament, planning for Australias energy needs would be dominated by renewables, batteries and hydro? For...

Playing politics with renewables: how the right is losing its way

Feb 25, 2017 13:01 pm UTC| Insights & Views Politics

This summer has seen a concerted attack on renewable energy coming out of Canberra, featuring everyone from One Nation senator Malcolm Roberts to Coalition ministers channelling the far right of their party. So absurd and...

Climate Change Series

'We must keep the lights on': how a cyclone was used to attack renewables

Oct 04, 2016 08:17 am UTC| Nature

The mid-latitude cyclone with no name that hit South Australia last week, spawning two tornadoes and 80,000 electricity strikes, destroyed 22 massive transmission towers carrying electricity across the state. The...

AI Revolution Series

Climate Change Series

Climate change makes a comeback – with the help of social media

Jun 14, 2016 07:44 am UTC| Insights & Views Nature

In what has been shaping up as the election that forgot climate change, there are signs emerging in the Coalitions election campaign that it is starting to listen to polls, its own focus groups and social media chat on...

Climate Change Series

Why has climate change disappeared from the Australian election radar?

May 23, 2016 09:33 am UTC| Insights & Views Politics

Two weeks into a protracted election campaign, it is looking ever-more likely that climate change is to be placed way down the order of business at least for the major parties. The contest over climate change that...

Economy

U.S. Stock Futures Steady as Iran Reviews U.S. Ceasefire Proposal

U.S. stock index futures held relatively steady on Wednesday evening after Iran signaled it was reviewing a ceasefire proposal put forward by Washington aimed at ending the ongoing Middle East conflict. The cautious market...

Oil Prices Climb as Iran Reviews U.S. Peace Proposal Amid Middle East Tensions

Oil prices edged higher during Asian trading on Thursday as conflicting signals over potential Middle East de-escalation kept energy markets on alert. Brent crude futures for May delivery rose 0.8% to $103.02 per barrel,...

Gold Prices Climb as Middle East Ceasefire Talks Stir Market Optimism

Gold prices edged higher on Wednesday as cautious optimism surrounding potential U.S.-Iran ceasefire negotiations lifted sentiment across global markets. Spot gold climbed 0.7% to $4,504.58 per ounce, while U.S. gold...

Middle East War Rattles Global Markets as Oil Tops $100 and Dollar Surges

Asian equity markets struggled to find clear direction on Thursday as investors navigated a rapidly shifting geopolitical landscape in the Middle East. Iran signaled conditional willingness to consider a U.S.-backed...

Federal Reserve Balance Sheet Reduction: Brookings Research Outlines Possible Path Forward

New research from the Brookings Institution suggests the Federal Reserve could shrink its balance sheet through a combination of regulatory adjustments, payment system reforms, and more active market interventions without...

Politics

Russia-Iran Military Alliance Deepens With Drone Shipments Amid Middle East Tensions

Moscow is moving closer to completing a multi-phase transfer of lethal drones, medicine, and food supplies to Tehran, according to Western intelligence sources cited by the Financial Times. The deliveries are designed to...

Trump Seeks Quick End to U.S.-Iran Conflict Amid Ongoing Middle East Tensions

President Donald Trump has privately told close advisers that he wants to avoid a drawn-out war with Iran and is pushing for a swift resolution to the ongoing conflict, according to a Wall Street Journal report published...

Iran-U.S. Negotiations: Tehran Reviews American Peace Proposal Amid Ongoing Gulf Conflict

Irans foreign minister confirmed Wednesday that Tehran is examining a United States peace proposal aimed at ending the escalating Gulf war, though officials stressed this falls short of direct negotiations between the two...

FEMA Reinstates $1 Billion Disaster Prevention Grant Program After Court Order

The Federal Emergency Management Agency has announced the resumption of a key disaster prevention initiative after facing legal challenges that forced the reversal of its earlier cancellation. The agency is once again...

Taiwan Arms Deal on Track Despite U.S.-China Summit Uncertainty

Taiwans Defense Minister Wellington Koo confirmed Thursday that the next major U.S. arms sale to the island remains on schedule, revealing that Taipei has already received a formal letter of guarantee from Washington...

Science

SpaceX Pivots Toward Moon City as Musk Reframes Long-Term Space Vision

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has revealed a significant shift in the companys near-term space exploration strategy, announcing that SpaceX is now prioritizing the development of a self-growing city on the Moon rather than focusing...

SpaceX Prioritizes Moon Mission Before Mars as Starship Development Accelerates

Elon Musks SpaceX is shifting its near-term space exploration strategy, choosing to prioritize a return to the Moon before pursuing missions to Mars, according to a recent Wall Street Journal report citing sources familiar...

NASA and SpaceX Target Crew-11 Undocking From ISS Amid Medical Concern

NASA has confirmed that the agency, in coordination with SpaceX, is targeting no earlier than 5 p.m. Eastern Time (2200 GMT) on Wednesday, January 14, for the undocking of the SpaceX Crew-11 mission from the International...

Neuralink Plans High-Volume Brain Implant Production and Fully Automated Surgery by 2026

Elon Musks brain-computer interface company Neuralink is preparing for a major expansion, announcing plans to begin high-volume production of its brain implant devices and transition to a fully automated surgical procedure...

Jared Isaacman Confirmed as NASA Administrator, Becomes 15th Leader of U.S. Space Agency

The U.S. Senate has officially confirmed billionaire private astronaut Jared Isaacman as the new NASA administrator, making him the 15th leader in the agencys history. The confirmation, which took place on Wednesday, marks...

Technology

Google's TurboQuant Algorithm Sends Memory Chip Stocks Tumbling

Major memory chipmakers took a significant hit on Thursday after Google researchers introduced a groundbreaking compression algorithm that threatens to reduce artificial intelligence demand for memory chips. Samsung...

Reflection AI Eyes $25 Billion Valuation in Massive $2.5 Billion Funding Round

Nvidia-backed artificial intelligence startup Reflection AI is in advanced discussions to secure $2.5 billion in fresh funding, with negotiations pointing to a staggering pre-money valuation of $25 billion, according to a...

Nanya Technology Shares Surge 10% After $2.5 Billion Private Placement from Sandisk and Cisco

Shares of Taiwan-based memory chip manufacturer Nanya Technology soared to their daily limit of 10% on Thursday morning following the companys announcement of a major $2.5 billion private placement deal backed by prominent...

SK Hynix Eyes Up to $14 Billion U.S. IPO to Fund AI Chip Expansion

South Korean memory chip giant SK Hynix has submitted a confidential filing for a U.S. stock market listing in 2026, with sources indicating the move could raise as much as $14 billion. The company intends to offer...

Meta Ties Executive Pay to Aggressive Stock Price Targets in Major Retention Push

Meta Platforms made a significant move this week by granting restricted stock units and stock options to several of its most senior leaders, including Chief Financial Officer Susan Li and Chief Technology Officer Andrew...